What Is Holi? Introducing Holi to Kids
Holi, the festival of colors, is a Hindu celebration at the end of winter to celebrate the beginning of spring, love, repairing relationships, and bright colors! Much like Easter, some families observe religious services and practices, but many others just enjoy the fun holiday activities. This is a helpful BBC article that goes over more of the holiday and the religious aspects like celebrating the Hindu god Krishna.
A Note on Cultural Appropriation & Holi
If you’ve never heard of Holi, you still might recognize one of its most exciting events—throwing powdered colors in the air and running through them. (This is where color run fundraisers came from.) Throwing color originated with Holi festivals throughout India. But is there a way to avoid cultural appropriation and still celebrate other cultures, festivals, and activities like Holi? I think so! Not only do we all use things from other cultures in our everyday lives, but it’s super important for kids to have different cultural experiences. It’s an important part of their development. And to keep our celebrations from being insensitive it’s important to make sure that we honor and give credit to the culture. Also, to make sure not to mock anything highly respected or religious. (EG: making a game out of or image with Krishna would be offensive)
5 Holi Activities to Do with Kids
1. Splatter or Straw Painting for Holi
If it’s nice outside, have some fun with some splatter paint! Make sure it’s washable though. (I splatter painted a jacket outside over a decade ago, and the paint stains are still on the porch. LOL) You could also do some painting inside with watercolors: put some giant drops on the paper and blow them around with straws. Talk about how Holi celebrates colors and the start of new life in spring. The Multicultural Kids Blog has a big database of Holi activities and crafts for kids.
2. Brighten Someone’s Day
A part of Holi is celebrating our relationships. Wish someone blessings through the year and tell them how they color your life! Sit down and write some colorful letters to the important people in your life.
3. Watch & Read about Holi
Mira, Royal Detective is a Disney Jr. show and there is a really fun Holi episode (Season 1, Episode 25). You can stream that on Disney Plus. On Netflix, there’s a fantastic show called Mighty Little Bheem that has a festival of colors collection. We love this show because it’s super fun and always under 10 minutes. Coulors Of Us has a great list of Holi books. My favorite is the board book Festival of Colors by the Sehgals. Vashti Harrison is one of my favorite illustrators, and this book is just SO pretty.
4. Make Colorful, Traditional Holi Food Together!
My Little Moppet has a great list of kid-friendly Holi recipes. The one we want to try first is something my little one heard about on Mira, Royal Detective: mango lassi. Food Network has a Mango Lassi Popsicle recipe that we’re trying. The only change I’m going to make is slightly less ginger. The ingredients are pretty simple: mango chunks, a can of sweetened condensed milk, ginger, cardamom, and lime.
5. Attend a Local Holi Festival
There are a ton of DIY ideas online for throwing your own Holi color throw party. But nothing quite beats getting to experience this in person with other people. The best part about these events is that they are inclusive; you don’t have to be religiously practicing Hindu to come enjoy these celebrations. While the largest celebration around happens in Houston, there are a couple of family-friendly events in Collin County as well, both happening on Saturday, March 19. The Festival of Colors and Color Run is held at Southfork Ranch. The color run and festival have different entrance fees, but kids under 5 get into the festival for free! Dallas Holi Fest is huge and happening near Watters Creek and Exchange in Allen. Kids under 4 are free and there are different ticket options available.
Thanks for checking out this list of Holi activities for kids!
Before you go, check out these other posts…
Traveling for Spring Break? Check out these 7 travel sleep tips!
Check out this post on St. Patrick’s Day shenanigans by an Irish mom!
Don’t miss our March Guide to family-friendly local Collin County events!
